What is the Anxiety UK approved therapist scheme?
As a qualified therapist, or someone working towards accreditation or in training, Anxiety UK can offer you the opportunity to be part of a scheme where you will gain invaluable experience of working with clients presenting with a range of anxiety disorders from conditions such as agoraphobia, social phobia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) through to specific phobias such as needle phobia, spider phobia etc.
We would particularly welcome applications currently for CBT therapists in Cardiff, Birmingham, Bristol, Newcastle and the East of England.
“I enjoy working for AUK. It’s good you do the checks you do to make sure I am competent. This is very important, to ensure that clients get a good service, I also think the FAST service is a good idea too.”
“Anxiety UK is a charity that has continually provided unequivocal support for both clients and therapist suffering from anxiety. As a professional therapist working for Anxiety UK, I can say that I have benefited myself from having brilliant use of technological assets to assist me with my work, approachable staff, frequent and meaningful communication that, in my mind, places the charity as one of the best around.”
Benefits of being an Anxiety UK Approved Therapist – what’s in it for you!
| Available from Anxiety UK | |
| Unique dedicated Anxiety UK Approved Therapist logo for all your literature and online marketing materials. | Yes |
| Payment for therapy for our members range from £15 -£50 for traditional therapy services and £50 per session for FAST (see below). We also provide therapeutic support for a range of partner beneficiaries, broadening the opportunity to work with a wide range and variety of clients/anxiety conditions. | Yes |
| The opportunity to offer support to non-members via our FAST scheme, a quick and alternative method to access therapy support from Anxiety UK Approved Therapists at the rate of £50 per session. | Yes |
| Access to AUK membership package at reduced rate of £20 annually (normal rate £30) with all the benefits of membership including the quarterly magazine Anxious Times. | Yes |
| Access to various useful practitioner resources including risk assessment flow charts, safeguarding protocol, advice and good practices. | Yes |
| Opportunities for training & development supplemented by CPD support and dedicated Anxiety UK Approved Therapist conference. | Yes |
| Access to a dedicated therapist area on Anxiety UK’s web site with a range of downloadable resources to support your practice and networking opportunities with your peers to share best practice. | Yes |
| Our offer caters for trainee, newly qualified and fully accredited therapists providing the opportunity to work towards accreditation or client hours with a diverse range of clients from the mild to more complex and for those new to private practice, the Anxiety UK therapy placement allows you to gain the skills needed to become independent, whilst still under the umbrella of a national charity. |
Yes |
| Access to informal line management supervision on request and regular communication from AUK including regular Services E-news bulletins, sharing of case studies & best practice examples. |
Yes |
| Regular communication from the AUK and sharing of case studies & best practice information. | Yes |
| Links to our clinical advisory panel, eminent experts in the field of anxiety who support and advise the work of AUK and its team of therapists. | Yes |
| Professional access to AUK clients if you wish to undertake research into any field of anxiety in support your work and training as a therapist. | Yes |
| The option to be an expert in a particular field, e.g. the provision of therapy for clients from a specific BME community | Yes |
| Significant discount on membership of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America for Anxiety UK Approved Therapists | Yes |
You can apply to become an Anxiety UK therapist here.How do I become an AUK approved therapist?
Once you have completed the online application form via our website, paid the £25 processing fee (non-refundable) and submit details of two referees, we will then arrange a telephone interview with you before proceeding to the next stage.
Subject to a satisfactory interview outcome, Anxiety UK will source references from your named referees (this normally takes 2-3 weeks). While we are waiting for the references you will be asked to undertake the pre-requisite training detailed below.
Once we have received satisfactory references, all pre-requisite training has been completed and all relevant paperwork has been submitted to Anxiety UK, subject to a satisfactory DBS check we will then add you to our database of Anxiety UK Approved Therapists ready to receive referrals.
Pre-requisite training
Anxiety disorders
In addition all new applications from those wishing to become Anxiety UK approved therapists are being asked to undertake this one hour online learning and we are asking all current therapists to also undertake the training to underpin their own knowledge and understanding of anxiety disorders.
Developed by the Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education, the Anxiety disorders learning tool supports the implementation of NICE quality standard 53, Anxiety disorders. Interactive activities will help the user identify and manage generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and body dysmorphic disorder.
This tool provides one hour of valuable interactive CPD and supports some of the quality standard’s key recommendations including improving the recognition and assessment of anxiety disorders, evidence-based psychological interventions and choosing appropriate drug treatment.
The tool can be found on the Anxiety quality standard page on the NICE website (click on online learning tool) or the education section of the NICE website or direct from the NICE e-learning platform for CPPE NICE tools.
Information Governance training
We will also provide you with access to a short course regarding Information Governance training which also needs to be completed as part of the application process.
How we set therapy rates
Payments will range between £15 and £50 per session. Please note: Anxiety UK sets the client rate and depending on the type of therapy will take either two (clinical hypnotherapy) or three (CBT & Counselling) payments up front. This is to contribute to the running of the therapy service, something we currently do not receive any external funding for.
For more information
If you have any specific questions please don’t hesitate to contact us. Please telephone 0161 226 7727 or email services@anxietyuk.org.uk
Please do bear in mind, though, that we are unable to guarantee any degree of regular referrals or to forecast the volume of them at any given time.
You can apply to become an Anxiety UK therapist here.
The therapists we work with include:
Cognitive behavioural therapists (CBT): Applicants must hold a qualification from a course accredited by the British Association for Behavioural & Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP) or be on a CBT Diploma course recognised by the BABCP, or hold individual accreditation with the BABCP.
Counsellors: Applicants must hold a Diploma in Counselling from a British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP) or British Psychological Society (BPS) accredited course, or be working towards a Diploma in Counselling on a course that is accredited either by the BACP or the BPS, or hold individual accreditation with the BACP.
Clinical hypnotherapists: Applicants must be registered with one of the following professional bodies the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council ,the British Society of Clinical Hypnosis or be registered with the General Hypnotherapy Register, National Council for Hypnotherapy and/or be registered with the UK Council for Psychotherapy and or The Hypnotherapy Society.
Clinical psychologists: Applicants must hold a BPS approved Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and be registered with HCPC with experience of delivering CBT based therapy. Membership and /or individual accreditation with the BABCP would be welcomed.
Registration with ‘governing bodies’
Anxiety UK currently accepts applications from a number of registered governing bodies. These include:
British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP)
British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapists (BABCP)
Complimentary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC)
General Hypnotherapy Register (GHR)
British Society for Clinical Hypnotherapists (BSCH)
National Council for Hypnotherapists (NCH)
United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
The National Hypnotherapy Society (HS)
National Counselling Society (NCS)
Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC)
The Association for Professional Hypnosis and Psychotherapy (APHP)
Governing bodies often have an ethical framework that they expect members to adhere to when practicing their discipline. Membership is a way of clients ascertaining that therapists have been checked and have met certain quality standards in their practice. They also offer therapists the opportunity to become accredited, which is a mark of the knowledge and experience they have developed over time.
Common criteria for all bodies accepted by Anxiety UK is that they expect practitioners to have met the following criteria:
- Produce copies of Diploma level qualifications as a minimum (or be studying towards one).
- Proof of professional indemnity insurance.
- Sign up to a minimum of ten hours continuing professional development (CPD) per year. This varies between bodies.
- Have a named clinical supervisor in place. In addition to this, Anxiety UK expects all therapists registered with them to have a valid DBS certificate (enhanced version), which is less than three years old.
